


Breaking and Entering

by kit_bit



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: College AU, F/M, ITS CUTE AND HAPPY OKAY, M/M, Minor Violence, Mostly Fluff, Profanity, definitely awkwardness, drinking/drunkenness, lil bit of angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2018-04-13
Packaged: 2018-12-29 22:12:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12094548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kit_bit/pseuds/kit_bit
Summary: Shiro and Allura live across the hall from each other. They've never actually met before tonight. Some drunkenness and lock picking ensures it's the most awkward introduction ever.





	1. Nice Ass

It was late.

Way, way too late.

Allura knew it, but only as a faint notion in the back of her head. It was almost entirely drowned out by how tired she was.

And how drunk she was.

She looked at her watch. “Shit,” she mumbled, only half-registering the numbers she saw. 4? 5? _Whatever._ She knew it meant that her girls night out had lasted entirely longer than any of them intended it to. How many bars had they even gone to? Allura sort of remembered something about a giant stuffed cow. Her best friend Shay had been singing at some point. Which was always a warning indication of how crazy the night had been.  

Allura blinked wearily. Where was she? Oh right, she had gotten a ride home. She gazed up at the building in front of her. Fourteen stories of apartments looked down on the girl in a silvery dress, holding her heels and swaying slightly. Many of the windows were dark already. Muffled music came from one dimly lit apartment from a college party that moved home once the clubs closed. It was a popular complex for the upperclassmen to rent out, considering how close it was to campus.

She fumbled through the front entrance, dropping her keys twice in the process. The front desk attendant didn’t even look up. Allura wasn’t the first uncoordinated latecomer to stumble through his graveyard shift. She made her way across the lobby, hit the elevator button, and slumped against the wall.

 _Ughhhhh… this was a mistake._ But she was too tired to berate herself now.

With a soft **ping!** the elevator opened. Allura walked into the doorway, completely unaware of the tall figure walking out. She ran into them head on. “Oh!” Came a surprised voice, with hands reaching out as she stumbled backwards. She felt herself fall, and then stop. Allura looked down. Two hands were holding her, keeping her upright. The hands were connected to arms, she groggily observed, which were in turn connected to a guy whose face looked very concerned. She recognized him. They passed each other in the hallways sometimes, but Allura didn't think they had spoken before.

A large white streak of hair fell forward from his head as he was leaning towards her. “Are you alright?” he said, “I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting anyone to be down here so late. I should have watched where I was going.” He glanced down at his bag. It was laying on the ground, having slid off his shoulder when he reached out to catch her.

Allura still hadn’t said anything. Words kept floating up in her head, but sunk down before they reached the surface. She was dimly aware of the fact that he was still holding her in something resembling a dance dip. Pretty romantic for strangers. It even merited a curious glance from the front desk attendant. The guy saw her eyes move towards his hands on her waist, and blushed deeply. “I- Fuck, I’m sorry-” Flustered, he righted her and bent over to pick up his bag. Allura watched. _Nice ass_ , she thought to herself.

He stood back up, appearing even redder and more flustered than before. The poor guy couldn’t look directly at Allura. Oh god, did she say that out loud? Or just in her head? He looked at her outfit and saw the way she was standing to keep her balance. Maybe he knew she was drunk. “Uh… I- Ummm. Well- ….” he managed.

Shit. She did say it, she groggily acknowledged. Oh well. Allura doubted she would be seeing much of him again anyways. She didn’t even know his name. Just that he lived across the hall and biked a lot. She kept studying his face.

“I… better. Go.” He finally stammered, and quickly turned away, shouldering the bag.

“Mmkay, bye,” she mumbled, slowly processing his absence while she entered the elevator. As it worked its way up to her floor, his face stayed in her mind. He looked so worried. _What was he worried about?_ Oh right, she almost fell. He was cute, all flustered like that.

 **Ping!** Allura made it out of the elevator and onto her floor. Thoughts of the guy faded out as she grew more aware of a new and more pressing thought: her bed.

Allura groaned. _What a fucking night._

She got to her apartment door without knocking over anyone’s trash cans. She fumbled for the right key and managed to get it into the lock.

The key stuck, refusing to turn. Allura groaned again. Her key always got jammed at the most inconvenient times. Nevermind, she already knew a trick to opening the doors. Twisting and holding the knob at an exact angle, Allura pushed down with her left hand and slid the key hard through the door jamb with her right. The door shuddered open, probably aware that she had cheated. It was a trick Allura was pretty sure only she knew, and she had always made sure no one was around when she used it. Better to keep it a secret than have someone rob her apartment.

She shut the door behind her and locked it. Didn’t bother with the lights. Tossed her purse on the counter and her shoes on the floor. She felt no desire to hunt for pajamas or brush her teeth. Finally, an exhausted and drunk Allura flung herself on the bed. Feeling her head spin from the quick movement, she sighed. _I’m gonna regret this tomorrow._

Maybe she should have paid a little closer attention to the numbers on the door. Maybe she should have noticed the apartment was a little tidier than hers, that the bedspread wasn’t the same fluffy white but rather a dark grey, that a cat she didn’t own had jumped up on the bed and curled its fluffy body into hers as she slept.

Maybe if she had, she would have actually realized how much she would regret it tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woooo, first chapter of my first shallura fic! Allura, babe, what have you gotten yourself into :O


	2. Insomniac

Shiro rolled over and looked at the clock on his bedside table.

It was early.

Way, way too early.

Somehow he always ended up this way, waking up in the middle of the night and unable to fall back asleep. He had to rearrange his classes for it. Nobody minded. Shiro suspected they took pity on him anyways. The insomnia, like most other changes in Shiro’s life, all came from what had happened. But Shiro hated pity, and he hated lying awake every night.

He sat up and moved to the edge of his bed. Akira, Shiro’s cat, sleepily raised his head and looked at Shiro. “It’s alright, buddy, I’ll be back to cuddle in a little bit.” Akira gave a soft meow and flicked his tail. “I promise,” said Shiro. The cat stretched his legs and returned to sleeping.

[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/152388944@N08/40683483624/in/dateposted-public/)

Shiro pulled on a sweatshirt and grabbed his school bag. Lately his long night walks had been taking him to the library. Might as well get some work done if he couldn’t sleep. The library was always open and somehow made him feel calmer when he was inside.

He jammed some shoes on his feet and grabbed his keys. “See you later, Akira,” Shiro called, and shut the door. He heard a party going on somewhere down the hall as he locked his apartment. Shiro smiled wanly. Two years ago that would be him, out late on a Friday night with friends. He was an excellent partier. But now he just didn’t seem to have the energy. All of his time went to school and keeping himself together. It was exhausting work.

Shiro pressed the elevator button. He thought about what lab reports he would have to get in by Monday, and which group projects he would have to coordinate a meeting for.

He was so immersed in thought when the elevator opened that he didn’t see the girl in front of him. She hit his chest with a thump, falling backwards. _Shit!_ Shiro reached out to grab her, dropping his bag in the process. He recognized her as the girl who lived across the hall from him. Was she okay?

Whenever he saw her, Shiro was always startled at how pretty she was. But right now she also looked like she was in bad shape. Her shoes were in her hand, her makeup was smudged, and her hair was sticking out at odd angles. With a start, Shiro realized he was still holding her. _Idiot, come on!_ He let her go and bent over to pick up his bag.

“Nice ass,” she said simply.

_WHAT?_

Shiro straightened, unsure of what to say. He felt his face heating up. Here was this unbelievably pretty girl, standing in front of him, looking frankly at him as she shifted her weight and held her shoes. Was she drunk? Oh god, she was probably drunk. Who would say that sober? Unless she was just ridiculously forward? He’d never spoken to this girl in his life, and now she was complimenting his butt? Shiro felt incredibly confused and uncomfortable.

“I better go,” he said.  

And with that, he escaped into the night.

Shiro spent a couple hours at the library, but had a very hard time focusing. “ _Nice ass_.” The thought of him holding her up like that wouldn’t leave him alone. Only now, replaying the scene in his head, did he realize that she said it with a slight British accent. Shiro blushed even deeper. The white haired girl he had only seen in their hall, or walking between buildings. He didn’t know her major, or what year she was. He hadn’t even formally met her until now. Until a 5AM collision that mainly involved him being an idiot.

[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/152388944@N08/41354591012/in/dateposted-public/)

Eventually, Shiro gave up on trying to complete any work. There wasn’t much more he could do here anyways. Everything else would have to be finished in the shop. He packed up his bag, waved to the sleepy librarian at the information desk, and headed home.

The sun started to peek out from behind the trees as he walked. Shiro ran his hand over his face, feeling the exhaustion start to seep in. He looked at his watch. 7AM.   _This is getting ridiculous._

Shiro lurched through the apartment building, finally reaching his hallway. No sound was coming from any of the apartments: everyone was dead asleep this early on a Saturday. He got to his door and dug in his pocket for his keys. Shiro could hardly keep his eyes open as he entered.

“I’m back,” he murmured sleepily, locking the door again. Not for the first time, he was glad he kept his apartment dark. He made his way to his room, too tired to notice a purse and a pair of heels out of place. Shiro groggily stripped to his boxers and climbed under the blankets. He was even too tired to notice what was most out of place: a girl in a silver dress, sleeping soundly on the other side of his bed.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shiro and I have a similar trait: too sleepy to notice anything :')


	3. Nosebleed

They spent the better part of Saturday that way, both assuming they were alone in their own beds. It was a peaceful morning as the cat snuggled between Shiro and Allura. They all slept soundly as birds began to softly twitter outside and voices from the hall came and went.

Eventually Akira woke up and stretched his legs, kneading Allura’s arm. He meowed. Shiro hadn’t fed him since last night, and the morning had already slipped into early afternoon. Groaning, Allura frowned. What was that noise? A splitting headache rang between her ears, making it hard to focus. _Well I saw that coming._ She was prone to particularly nasty hangovers. Allura opened her eyes. Immediately in front of her, so close she could feel their breath, was someone else in the bed. She couldn’t make out their face in the darkness. They looked huge.

“AAAAAAH!!!!” she shrieked, stumbling out of the bed and falling on the floor. Akira bolted out of the room, terrified by the noise.  _Who is THAT????_ She never brought people home after a night of drinking. Allura’s headache throbbed. _What is going on??_ She frantically grabbed a book on the bedside table and hurled it at the figure, who had already sat up at the sound of her scream. “OUCH!! WHAT THE FUCK?” Shiro exclaimed. After sitting up in a panic from the scream, Shiro felt a searing pain as something hit him squarely in the nose. 

He lept out of his bed and turned on the light, holding his nose. It had already begun to bleed. Standing in front of him was a trembling girl, with wide eyes and disheveled hair. She was holding up his lamp. She was- 

Allura dropped the lamp on the ground, where it shattered. Her face shifted from terrified to incredibly confused. Didn’t she know this guy? “Wait, you’re-”

“What the hell are you doing in my apartment??” Shiro asked frantically. Jesus, this was doing a number on his nerves. He could hear his heartbeat racing wildly in his ears. “What are YOU doing in MY apartment?” she demanded, still shaking. She had gotten home okay, right? She remembered passing out. Well, no. She remembered getting to the lobby, and… him. Her heart stopped. “DID YOU FOLLOW ME INTO MY APARTMENT LIKE SOME KIND OF CREEP?” she yelled. Now it was Shiro’s turn to be confused. “I- wait, wh-” but he was interrupted by an insistent meow in the kitchen. Allura broke her death glare from Shiro, looking for the noise. “Was that a… cat?" Finally, she noticed the bed.

It wasn’t hers.

“Hold on…” She looked around, her headache still searing. This wasn’t her room. Akira came back in the bedroom, meowing again. That wasn’t her cat. She stared at Shiro, standing in his boxers, his nose continuing to bleed profusely as he stared back at her. A question was starting to form on her lips when she remembered.

 

She had broken in.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> these crazy kids omg.... i know this chapters a little shorter than the previous two but I PROMISE the story will work itself out :) trust me I've got a LOT more in store ehueheuehuehue


	4. Start Over

Shiro set two coffee cups on the table.

“I’m so, so sorry, oh my god….” Allura started to apologize for the seventh time. Shiro smiled and shook his head as he sat down. He had thrown on a tshirt and some sweatpants.

“Really, I promise it’s fine. See?” he said, pointing to his nose. “The bleeding’s already gone down.”

 He had stuffed two cotton rounds up his nose to stem the blood flow. He was right, the white puffs were turning red a lot slower than the last four pairs had. Allura winced as she looked at the purple bruise that was starting to form on the bridge of his nose. In the past, she had noticed there was a deep scar there. A wave of guilt ran over her again. _Way to go, idiot._ “Not just for that, for everything. For breaking into your apartment, shattering your lamp, calling you a creep…” Allura trailed off, incredibly embarrassed.

 “I seriously promise it’s cool. It was a mistake, and the rest was just you defending yourself.” Shiro decided not to ask what kind of state she was in last night, or if she had remembered what she had said to him outside the elevator. “So, are you some kind of locksmith? How the hell did you get in? I know for sure that I locked that door before I left.” Allura gave him a small smile. “I have a trick. But I can’t tell it to you, I’m sorry.” She stopped smiling and blurted, “I promise I don’t break into other people’s apartments!! It’s only for when I get locked out of my own. Promise.”

 Shiro laughed. “Well, I guess I’ll have to take your word for it.”

 They sat for a while as the birds continued to chirp outside.  Shiro pulled the cotton rounds out of his nose, wincing slightly. Allura studied his apartment. It was clean and much better maintained than hers. His bike was propped up against a wall. A plant sat in front of her on the table, small and wispy. As she looked around, she realized that he had a rather large collection of plants. They were arranged around the apartment in different pots.

“Are… you sure you want me to stay?” Allura asked tentatively. Being in his apartment was awfully personal. She still felt ridiculous after everything that happened. He looked up and smiled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head with his right hand.

“Well, you’re already here, you might as well stay for some coffee right?” he laughed again. “You can consider it payback for breaking in and almost breaking my nose.”

Allura’s eyes widened as her face turned red. She was mortified. “I honestly cannot apologize enough, really-”

“No! No, sorry, I was kidding,” Shiro explained. _Shit_. He meant to lighten the mood, not make her feel worse. He was actually pretty impressed with how hard she threw that book. “Here, uh. Why don’t we start over? I’m Shiro.” He extended his right hand to shake Allura’s. He had a prosthetic that extended past his elbow. She realized she was staring at it as he held it towards her. She had only found out this morning he was missing his arm. “Oh! Sorry. I’m Allura,” she said as she reached out to shake his hand. It was warm.

Shiro saw where her gaze lingered. “Oh, uh.. Yeah! Haha.” He blushed a little and slid his hand under the table. “Nice to meet you, Allura.” Allura knew better than to ask what had happened to his arm. Especially since he didn’t seem very comfortable with her staring at it. “So, Shiro. You… you go to VU?” Shiro nodded, thankful for the diversion.

“Yeah, I’m a junior.”

“Nice!” She replied. “Me too.”

“What’s your major?” he asked.

“Psychology.”

“Whoah, awesome. I’m in engineering,” he responded.

“That’s really cool!” said Allura. “What kind?”

“Oh, uh… actually two kinds. Biomed and mechanical. Couldn’t choose between them so I chose both.” He chuckled at that.

Allura was impressed. Two majors? And so casual about it, too.   _Jesus, who is this guy?_

They lapsed into silence. Shiro drank some of his coffee, noting how odd it was to be making small talk with a girl who had just broken into his apartment. A girl who had just slept in his bed with him. Shiro choked on his drink a little. But Allura didn’t notice, as she had just involuntarily groaned and clutched her head in her hands. “What’s up?” asked Shiro.

“I just… have a little bit of a hangover.” 

Shiro raised his eyebrows. “I had a feeling, I didn’t want to be rude and ask though.” 

Now it was Allura’s turn to laugh. “Oh, god, you really thought all this would happen if I was sober?”

“I mean, no.. I didn’t think so, I just- I didn’t want to make you feel worse! In case you actually had done all that sober. Here, I’ve got some painkillers,” he said, standing up. He moved a small plant and opened a cabinet, popping two pills out of a container and offering them to Allura. “Really, it’s fine, I can manage-” she started, but Shiro insisted: “Hey, I’ve had my fair share of rough hangovers. I know one when I see one. And I promise it’s not some wacko drug, look, I just opened a new bottle,” he said, holding it up. Allura reluctantly picked up the pills and downed them with the rest of her coffee. Shiro sat back down, pleased he had helped.

Akira leaped into his lap and purred loudly. Shiro scratched behind his ears. “Cute cat,” Allura commented. Shiro smiled as he continued to pet Akira. “Thanks, this is Akira. He loves attention and cuddling... and being annoyingly affectionate.” Allura laughed and watched him pet this fluffy white cat. _Even with a lumpy bruise across his face, he’s still handsome._ Her face burned as she remembered that he was only wearing boxers when they had woken up. She was too disconcerted to pay it any attention at that time, but she realized how many scars she had seen across his body. And that he was missing his right arm. Now he was wearing the prosthetic, which he was using to pet his cat. Allura was struck again with how deeply she had barged into this poor guy's life. She was caught between embarrassment, curiosity, and a twinge of pity. What had he gone through?

“It’s fully functional,” Shiro said without looking up. “Works like any other hand. I.. well, I designed a fair bit of it myself. Same with making it. Pays off to be in the classes I’m in, I guess.” Allura blushed. “I didn’t mean to stare, I’m-” but he didn’t let her finish. “Again, it’s all good. I get a little uncomfortable with it sometimes, because I hate when people pity me.” Allura’s heart dropped and she felt ashamed. He continued, “Really, it should be me that’s sorry. You.. you had to see, uh.” He gestured awkwardly to his body, clearly not wanting to finish the sentence.

Allura’s ears turned pink. She didn’t know what to say. “I.. uh. It’s ok, Shiro.” She sort of laughed, and said “You- uh. Didn’t ask for me to break into your apartment, anyways.”

Shiro glanced up at her, thankful she didn’t inquire any further. Thankful she didn’t… seem perturbed. She was still in her dress from the night before, cradling her empty cup and staring down at it. The way the sunlight fell on her made her look like she was glowing. Her hair was even whiter. Little sparkles of light from her dress were dancing on the wall. She looked like an angel. _How did she end up here in my kitchen?_ He smiled ruefully thinking about the answer to that.

Allura startled suddenly, coming back to the same thought: that she was still here after everything that happened. Another flood of embarrassment crashed over her. “I should go,” she said, standing up and grabbing her purse. Shiro snapped out of his thoughts, “Oh, yeah ok.”  Akira leapt down from Shiro’s lap and wove between Allura’s legs. “He likes you,” Shiro observed. Allura smiled in spite of herself. She squatted down and stroked Akira. “I’ll, uh, I’ll see you around I guess?” she addressed Shiro, straightening as she headed for the door. He stood up. “Yeah,” he said. She opened the door and turned back. “Ok, well. See you,” she said as she walked out. He gave her a small wave. “Bye, Allura.”

Akira meowed as Shiro shut the door and leaned against it. He slid down the door and slumped on the ground. His cat curled in between his legs as he sighed.

 _Allura._ A pretty name. One he had never heard before.


	5. Wingman

**10.00AM:** Hey love just checking in on you. I know you get those wild hangovers, lmk if you want me to come over  
**11.25AM:** No worries, you’re probably asleep. Just… a little bit of worries.  
**12.03PM:** Luuuuuuura  
**1.59PM:** Allura???  
**2.59PM:** Ok now I am concerned. Babe. Please reply.  
**4.08PM:** ALLURA PLEASE TELL ME YOU GOT HOME SAFE  
**4.08PM:** BEST FRIEND EMERGENCY ALERT IS ABOUT TO GO INTO ACTION  
**4.09PM:** YOU’VE GOT LIKE 3 MINUTES BEFORE I COME OVER THERE and I swear to GOD if you’re not there I will smash someone’s BRAINS  
**4.09PM:** NOT REALLY BUT I WILL SURE AS HELL FEEL LIKE IT  
**4.10PM:** TICK TOCK MY ANXIETY’S ON THE CLOCK

Allura had no difficulties unlocking her apartment, probably because this time it was actually her own. She threw her shoes on the ground and sighed. Grabbing a bowl and some cereal, she poured herself a late breakfast. She was clearing her bowl when her phone buzzed insistently.

“OH, SHIT.” She exclaimed as she scrolled through all the frantic texts from Shay. She was hurriedly typing a response when her door swung wide open. In stormed Shay, out of breath and looking anxious.

[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/152388944@N08/43841714235/in/dateposted-public/)

  
“ALLURA!!!” Shay rushed over to her and swept her up in a tight hug. “I was so scared something happened! I saw you get out of the uber and make it to the building door, I should have walked with you all the way up!!” Allura was having a hard time breathing between Shay’s strong arms.

Shay let her go. Her face turned from relieved to stern. “Allura what the hell? Why didn’t you respond to me? And…” she looked over Allura, her anger subsiding. “You.. haven’t changed out of your dress from last night. Jeez, Lura, what happened?”

Allura, still recovering from the hug, started to explain. “Shay, I’m so so sorry. I…. oh god, it’s a long story.” She raked her hair back out of her face, reliving all the events of the past twelve hours. Shay looked concerned. “Here, let’s sit down.” She cleared a pile of Allura’s textbooks off the couch. Allura sat down next to her and put her hands in her face. Shay put a hand on Allura’s back. Her brown eyes were soft and kind. Allura groaned. “Oh, Shay… It’s sooooo embarrassing….” Shay looked shocked, but then laughed. “God, Lura, I thought something terrible happened!”

Allura pouted and looked up. “It IS terrible!” Shay gently hugged her, still laughing. “Okay, okay, sorry Lura. I’m just relieved you’re alright. So what happened?”

“I, uh…” Allura took a deep breath, then the words spilled out. “I broke into a guy’s apartment and spent the night there but then freaked out when I woke up and threw a book at him and told him HE was a creep for following me into MY apartment.” Shay stared at Allura, processing what she had just heard. “Wait, you… broke in? To someone else’s place? And… slept there?” She asked tentatively. Allura nodded, her stomach squirming at the fact that she had actually spent the night with Shiro.

Her best friend’s face darkened. “Did he….what did he do? How did he react? He didn’t do anything to you, right?” Allura was quick to answer: “No! No, god no, nothing like that. He was… he was actually really sweet.” She blushed.

Shay looked even more confused than before. “So let me get this straight. You broke in. Slept in his bed. Threw a book at his head. Called him a creep. And he was… okay with that?”

Allura shrugged. “He was super nice. Insisted I stay for coffee, gave me painkillers for my headache. Let me pet his cat. Told me about his prosthetic arm.” At that last sentence, Shay squinted at Allura.

“Hmmmmm.”

“W-what!” Allura protested.

Shay had a knowing look on her face. “Shiro, right?”

Allura was stunned. “You…. you know him?” Shay gave her a mischievous smile. “Maybe, maybe not.”

Allura shoved her in disbelief, laughing. “Oh, you little trickster! Tell me how you know him!” Shay was giggling too as Allura fell on top of her. “Fine, fine! I don’t know him, I know of him.” She sat up and pulled her phone out of her pocket. “He’s in Hunk’s group for some ME project. Hunk has raved about how cool he is. He showed up really late to their meeting today, super flustered. Hunk literally just texted me about it.”

Allura flopped back on the couch again. “Ughhhh I made him late for a group project? Crap, Shay, I feel terrible.” Shay looked over sympathetically at Allura. “Hey, none of this would have happened if you were sober. It was all an accident. And from what you’ve told me, he sounded pretty chill about it. Although…there’s only one way to find out…..” she waggled her eyebrows and typed something on her phone. Allura sat up. “Shay. I know what you’re about to do.” she said cautiously. “Please don-” but with a tap, declared, “Sent! Now we wait to hear back what made him so late.”

[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/152388944@N08/44750773101/in/dateposted-public/)

Allura groaned and fell back on the couch. “Shaaaaaayyyyyyy I clocked the guy in the nose! I broke into his apartment! He probably thinks I’m an idiot!” Shay laughed and said, “But he’s cute, isn’t he? Something tells me this guy is like, ridiculously hot. Otherwise it wouldn’t have Ms. Calm Cool and Collected over here in a twist.” Before Allura could retort any further, Shay’s phone emitted a soft beep! Shay looked down.

 **4:41PM:** what are you up to, goofball?? okay, I’ll ask.  
**4:42PM:** shay what happened to this poor guy? he can’t stop blushing I couldn’t even get an actual answer.  
**4:44PM:** …..he just ran into one of the machines.

Shay laughed sympathetically, “Oh, no! Well, sounds like we’ve found Mr. Calm Cool and Collected., huh?” Allura turned even redder. “Shay, cmon! You KNOW how I feel when you try to set me up with randos.” Shay rolled her eyes. “He’s not a rando! Hunk knows him, he has the Hunk stamp of approval!” Allura sighed, and Shay reached out for her hand.

“Look, Lura, you don’t have to do anything about it.” Her tone was serious and soft. “I won’t pursue it. I know your encounter was… super awkward, from the sound of it. I’m just your best friend and therefore your wingman.” She smiled, and continued, “And if this roguishly handsome sweetheart with a sick cyborg arm and a cat doesn’t do it for you, then that’s alright.” Allura started to laugh. “You ARE a goofball,” Allura joked. She squeezed Shay’s hand.

Shay looked at her phone again, and said, “Alright, well, I’m glad my best friend didn’t get abducted by aliens. I gotta go now though. Lab due tomorrow.” Allura stood up with her and gave her a hug. “You rock,” Allura teased. Shay scrunched up her nose and said, “Yeah, yeah, geology joke. When are you gonna learn any new ones?”

Allura stuck out her tongue. “You love me.”

“Of course I do. Even though you’re a burglar.”

Allura laughed and pushed her along out the door. “See you tomorrow, then?”

“Of course. See you Lura,” she said, smiling as she turned out the door.

Allura blew her a kiss as she walked out. She looked around her apartment. How the hell had she thought Shiro’s place was hers? Dishes were piled up in the sink. Her presentation boards were strewn on the ground. One shoe was sitting on top of the fridge.

Allura sighed. Maybe it’s time to clean up around here. She promised herself she would get to it after she finished her paper. And she would get to her paper after she took a long, long shower.  
[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/152388944@N08/43841713875/in/dateposted-public/)

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you knew damn well i was gonna make them best friends :)
> 
> PS Happy Shallura week! Ive been sitting on this update for a while, but what better time to push through and post it??
> 
> (peep shay's necklace--- balmera crystal oooo)


End file.
